Many DailyTech readers
may not be familiar with the name Criollo, but most chocolatiers
would know it well. The name is associated with many Spanish and
South American things, but in this case, it's the common name for a
species of Theobroma cacao, and one of the finest cocoa tree strains
in the world. Having been domesticated by the Mayans some three
thousand years ago, the Criollo cocoa beans produce some of the best
chocolate known to mankind.

Thanks to the marvels
of modern science and a team of researchers from twenty-odd
institutions around the world, the Theobroma cacao plant genome has
now been sequenced. Understanding which of the thirty three
thousand-plus genes control disease resistance, flavonoid production,
oil production and terpene biosynthesis may allow scientists and
horticulturists to produce even finer cocoa beans by genetically
engineering plants with custom output settings. A mere eighty four of
the more than twenty eight thousand protein expressing genes control
the quality of cocoa butter, which is an important ingredient in
everything from confectionary to cosmetics.

It remains to be
seen what kind of fracas may come from the world of genetically
modified chocolate. DailyTech readers
may be familiar with the antics
of Monsanto, who is taking the farming world by more of a
slogging, angry thud than a bang of any sort. But Criollo beans come
from a village in Venezuela by the name of Chuao. Simple plantation
farms turn a profit of about two dollars per day, with finer beans
like Criollo bringing in more. With the large stock of mature
plantation trees and relatively low profit for farmers, it seems hard
to believe these high quality grows will see genetic engineering in
our lifetimes.

"There's no chance that the iPhone is going to get any significant market share. No chance." -- Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer